The Rhymester—a novel

Crime Writers of Canada announced The Rhymester by Valerie A. Drego as a 2012 Arthur Ellis Finalist for Best Unpublished First Novel (Unhanged Arthur).

A crime on the streets of Montreal...

Private Investigator Mark Guilardi is handed a go-nowhere case: the murder of semi-recluse Cedric Allard, his death apparently collateral damage from a vicious break and enter. The drab murder is transformed into a chilling threat with the discovery of a disk at the crime scene. On it is a mocking little rhyme –

A is for ace, B is for ball, C is for cat, D is for doll...

Is a homicidal maniac on the loose?

Guilardi finds himself part of a massive police manhunt, chasing a madman with an alphabet fetish and a liking for progressive math.

But as he follows the trail from the quiet by-lanes of LaSalle to the mansions of Westmount and finally to a sex bar on Ste-Catherine Street, Guilardi realises he is not hunting a maniac on a murder spree but a killer with a plan...

Author bio:

Valerie Drego holds a Ph.D. in literature and a post graduate Diploma in Business Management. She is a short story writer and poet. She received the Editor’s Choice Award for Outstanding Achievement in Poetry, presented by the National Library of Poetry, 1998. She is also a novelist and non-fiction author. Her crime novel, The Rhymester, was judged a finalist in an open competition hosted by Crime Writers of Canada for the Unhanged Arthur Award, 2012. Her non-fiction work, End Zone, is a study of Bible prophecy and the last days. Her books are available through major international distribution channels including Amazon and Barnes and Noble, and in consignment through her publisher In Our Words Inc., www.inourwords.ca.